Publishers must urgently evolve their advertising strategies in the face of AI, platform disruption, and declining legacy channels. The core formula for success is direct audience relationships, first-party data monetisation, advanced measurement and diversification across sales strategies and multiple media types. The ad tech middlemen siphon off revenue, so reducing intermediaries and driving direct demand is critical to protecting CPMs and share of revenue.

The future will be increasingly video-first: digital video, CTV, and short-form vertical formats will dominate, while print and traditional display channels continue to decline. Diversification is essential — with events, branded content, creators, audio, and affiliate commerce offering strong growth paths. Publishers must also embrace automation and AI, with self-service, prompt-driven ad workflows, and prepare for the coming“outcomes age,” where advertisers buy against measurable results, not reach.

Engaging with brand safety requirements is crucial, yet it is misused to block news and cost publishers billions. The Advertising Initiative's imperatives this year are: diversify revenue, automate AdOps, build data signals, engage in advanced measurement, and get louder together. This is the most disruptive moment in 40 years of media and advertising, and iterative forward-looking strategies are key.

The town hall will be a practical distillation of what INMA members have learned in the past seven months – and a sneak peek into the subject in 2026.